Car Mechanic Suggestions

[Durian Fiend]

Hi again ~ I'm reporting back how it went with my car.  I'm pretty worried because I think I still need a good mechanic for myself and my daughter and granddaughters also.  There are several cars in my family and we all relied on Joe Pereira for 30 years, and we sure do miss him, as a good friend and as our mechanic.
As I said earlier, Mike told me my transmission is going out so I took the car to Transmission Technology and paid $235 just to be told my transmission is okay - the problem is in the engine. So I went back to Wally and he put in a new camshaft position sensor and I've been driving for two days and my car has finally stopped surging and choking.  I'm now not afraid to drive to Hilo, and am happy with the way the car is acting.  BUT the problem is now that Wally just installed a camshaft position sensor a year ago. He charged me $177. this time and about the same a year ago. I mentioned this to him and he said he didn't remember. Any ideas on what I should do? Thanks again for all your help.

Thanks for updating us.   These sensors should last several years. In the unlikely event the first replacement was with a used part (It's been known to happen) , then perhaps a one year lifespan wouldn't be surprising.   When getting parts replaced on your car by someone besides yourself, it's always a good idea to verify where the new part came from with a receipt or the box it came in.  
Your receipt from the shop should also list the error code diagnosed, if any.

Thanks to u tube videos, if you have a code reader and some basic skills with hand tools, many of these kind of repairs can be done at home.   I've done this parts swap on an old Subaru myself. 

My curiosity with your case led me to a very brief how to video right here:   https://www.google.com/search?q=camshaft+position+sensor+on+2005+neon&rlz=1C1VDKB_enUS967US967&oq=camshaft+position+sensor+on+2005+neon&aqs=chrome..69i57j0i22i30j0i22i30i625j0i390l4.9751j0j15&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:41d4184a,vid:Rkos9vIaXjA

[AaronM]

I had a converter removed and replaced with at straight pipe at Aloha Muffler in Hilo.  $200.

+1 for Aloha Muffler - the man is an artist.

[leilanidude]

The error also disables the temperature gauge on the dash and turns the engine cooling fans on high.
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You may have an air bubble inside the coolant system. have you recently added or flushed the coolant?

[Obie]

"The error also disables the temperature gauge on the dash and turns the engine cooling fans on high."

Your coolant temp sensor is intermittently failing. The computer doesn't know the temp so it turns the a/c off and the fans on.

[terracore]

No air bubble. I've had those before so pretty familiar with them. It may be the coolant temp sensor, but the interwebs tells me on my make and model its more likely the thermostat stuck open. The computer code isn't matching the dash readout (computer code is for engine temp lower than it should be based on its algorithm), and the car never reaches proper operating temp unless its hot out. The thermostat may have been stuck open for awhile, and never had any symptoms until summer was over because the problem started on the first cold morning we drove it.

If the temp sensor isn't too much $ I might just replace them both at the same time along with a coolant flush, in which case I'll never know what the culprit is. The sensor is a bit trickier to replace than the thermostat, so I have to gauge my motivation level along with the price. There is a third common cause of the error, which is a problem with the cooling fans being overactive.

[Obie]

Usually a stuck thermostat should give you an engine too cold too long code P1281.

[terracore]

We used our first mobile mechanic today.

The vehicle would have needed towing to be serviced and the mechanic came highly recommended so I gave it shot. He was recommended by people we know personally, and also has high praise from people online.

He showed up when he said he would, diagnosed the problem, and fixed it for the quoted price. He doesn't charge by the hour, the labor is flat rate. $120 fee to show up and diagnose the problem(s), the customer buys any necessary parts directly from the parts store, and he does the work at the quoted rate. I thought that the price he quoted me was fair. Since I was paying a flat rate for diagnosing problems, I had the emergency fixed but also had him diagnose the clunking sound I was hearing when I turned hard. He said it wasn't an emergency and I could put off the clunk repair for awhile but since he was here we got that fixed too. Mat 563-220-3509.

[terracore]

I used Mat's services again today. The starter on our truck was going out. I normally would have swapped it out myself because miraculously it was in a spot that was easy to get to, but I have an injured wrist and it's definitely a job that requires two hands. I asked him how much to replace the starter (no diagnostic work) and he quoted a fair flat rate and two hours after my initial inquiry the problem was solved and with none of the drama of taking it to a local mechanic shop.

I was doubly-glad I didn't try to do it myself because the bolts were seized and to get the old starter out required a pile of tools I don't own.

On a somewhat unrelated note one of our Impalas had developed an odd vibration from the back that seemed to peak at about 45 MPH and was less pronounced slower or faster than that. I was guessing one of the tires was out of balance and it didn't seem like an emergency until it suddenly became much more pronounced, and at all speeds. I followed the wife as she drove looking at the tires to see if there was anything perceptible while it was moving because the tires looked fine when I examined them on the vehicle. Everything looked normal so I decided to pull the wheels off (one at a time) to get a closer look and started with the driver's side wheel because of a "hunch" but after I got the lug nuts off, the wheel wouldn't come off. I tried kicking it, repeatedly, etc, and it was like it was welded on. I had never experienced this before. I tried all the suggestions youtube had to offer and none of them worked. WTF? So I settled on the "last resort" and I'll save everybody 7 minutes of youtube time summarized into a single sentence: take the lug nuts off and drive the car, and the wheel will come off on it's own! (Of course, you don't want to take them OFF, just loosen them and then hand tighten with an injured wrist and driving a short distance on any road in Orchidland will do the rest).

Once I had the wheel off and could roll it on the ground I could see where something in the tire's internal structure was separating and causing it to be slightly deformed. I was probably close to getting a blowout. Fortunately I have a full sized spare so got the car back in action pretty quick but all this leads to my next question. I have a good tire that I can swap for the defective one- where is an affordable/drama free place I can take the tires and the rim to get them swapped?

[HiloJulie]

"Once I had the wheel off and could roll it on the ground I could see where something in the tire's internal structure was separating and causing it to be slightly deformed. I was probably close to getting a blowout. Fortunately I have a full sized spare so got the car back in action pretty quick but all this leads to my next question. I have a good tire that I can swap for the defective one- where is an affordable/drama free place I can take the tires and the rim to get them swapped?"

The only place I know that will do this while "looking the other way" is K&J Tire, on Kekuanaoa, right before the shopping center. 

Keep in mind that tires do have an "expiration date" and most tire installers won't mount a tire if its "expired." (Generally, six years after date of manufacturer)

Your description is classic of "dry rot" where the internal plys have dried out and begun to separate from each other.

In the 30 plus years I've lived here I NEVER wore out a set of tires - just got to the point of them not holding air - or separating like yours did.

And if you do end up buy new tires, use this link to make sure you're not buying a "brand new" tire that is already 3 plus years old!

Tire Date Code: Reading a Tire's Manufacture Date | Goodyear Tires

[Durian Fiend]

I tried that trick (driving car with lug nuts removed) many years ago after a friend with a little Toyota 2WD pickup truck on Papaya Farms road asked for help getting a front wheel/tire off.  

It did not work!  Couldn't believe it. 

Anti seize applied on the hub to wheel mating surface is a wonderful product to keep this problem from happening. Also great on bolt threads to prevent nuts from rusting themselves into a permanent attachment.

Terracore, what is the hourly rate charged by the mobile mechanic?